


Away from the cold dark knight

by Mystrothedefender



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-13
Updated: 2013-11-13
Packaged: 2018-01-01 09:28:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1043205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mystrothedefender/pseuds/Mystrothedefender
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Edward is on the streets, again, only Batman can offer him the help he needs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Away from the cold dark knight

Edward shivered as he walked through the dark night, buttoning his jacket and digging his hands into his pockets, shrinking himself to try to stop himself from shivering.   
He flinched as he heard a noise behind him, he grit his teeth as he turned to see the source of the noise. He frowned at the sight; three large men approaching him, obviously armed, hoping to mug him or something.  
They shouted incoherently, they were drunk, stumbling along. Edward exhaled loudly, “What was that? You’ll have to speak a little clearer,” he frowned, readying himself for a fight.  
They didn’t reply but their pace increased, Edward frowned, “Shit,” he whispered to himself. He had hoped that this wouldn’t happen, he’d been so good, kept a low profile, not done anything ‘wrong’ in over a month, what a shame that streak would be broken in an act of self defence.  
He jolted as a black mass dropped down a few feet from him, throwing itself at the thugs, leaving them unconscious in a matter of minutes.  
Edward huffed gently as the last thug hit the ground, “Thank you for that but I could have handled that myself.”  
“I’ve not heard from you in months, Edward,” Batman growled, turning to the green-clad man, emotionless as always.  
Edward shrugged, “Yeah, I know… I’ve been busy.”  
“Doing what?”  
“Nothing illegal.”  
Batman approached him, he tensed slightly but tried not to let it show. “You were talking about becoming a private detective, I thought you’d be in touch?”  
Edward cast his eyes to the floor, “Yeah, I…I thought about it.”  
“You decided against it?” Batman asked, seeming oddly interested, Edward didn’t think he cared that much about his decision.  
“Not exactly,” Edward shrugged, backing away as Batman moved closer.  
“Then what? How are you surviving Edward? Or are you living on the streets, again?”  
“I’ve never lived on the streets,” Edward mumbled, shaking his head.  
Batman straightened up, “Don’t lie to me, Nigma.”  
Edward stood still, still visibly shivering, refusing to speak. He didn’t want to admit how badly he was doing; no one would hire him and he had burned all bridges with his old ‘friends’. He didn’t want to associate with them anymore, but no one else wanted to associate with him.  
Batman seemed to have relaxed slightly, sensing that the man was hiding something. “You know I have a place you can stay, if you need it.”  
Edward shook his head, “I don’t need your charity, Batman. I can survive on my own.”  
Batman frowned softly, “Edward. Come with me.”  
Edward shook his head again, standing firm, he didn’t need help, he didn’t want help.  
“Edward,” Batman half-growled, “Come with me.”  
“I’ve not done anything wrong,” Edward said quietly, stepping back again.  
“I’m not saying you have. I want to help you.”  
“You can’t help me,” Edward frowned.  
“I can try. Come with me, Edward,” Batman said sternly, reaching out to take the man’s wrist. He didn’t protest, though he did struggle slightly as the vigilante began to pull him towards the car.  
He sat without a word, refusing to look at Batman as the man closed the door and sat in his own seat.  
He was almost silent as the car sped through the streets, Batman kept glancing at him, making him edgy, uneasy.  
“What happened, Edward?” Batman inquired, trying his best to sound friendly and unintimidating.  
“Nothing,” Edward said in his usual self-righteous tone.  
“What do you mean nothing?” Batman asked, still trying to sound non-threatening, “When I last talked to you you had a plan… you were renting an apartment and looking for a job.”  
“Well,” Edward shook his head, “It turned out I owed people a lot of money, and when they’d taken what I had they spread shit about me… No one has wanted to hire me since.”  
“Why didn’t you tell someone?” Batman asked, still glancing between the road and his ‘captive’.  
Edward’s eyebrow twitched upward, “You mean you? Why would I tell you? Like you would ever help me…”  
Edward would never admitted to needing help even if he thought Batman would have helped, honestly he hadn’t expected this. He wasn’t even sure where Batman was taking him but it had to be better than sleeping on the floor of an abandoned building.  
“That’s what I’m doing now, isn’t it?” Batman asked, unable to stop a slightly growl shadowing his voice. He pulled the car into a long alleyway and stopped, Edward frowned and looked around; there wasn’t enough room to open his door. Why had Batman brought him here?  
He jumped and held back a gasp as the car started to slide towards the wall, and the wall lifted to take it, and he found himself inside a dark grey panelled room. He looked around; there was a small apartment-like space at the other end of the building; a tv, a computer, a bed.  
He frowned as he stepped out of the car and Batman led him across the oddly massive space, unsure what to make of all this.  
Only now, in the light, could Bruce see what a state Edward was in: covered in dirt, his shirt ripped in a few places, bruises covering the skin what little skin was visible.  
“What is this place?” the man asked, slightly startled by the echo his voice produced in the large space.  
“This is where I rest during the night if I am unable to get home,” Batman informed. “The address is 225 westlane. You can use it for now.”  
“You’re giving me an apartment?” Edward asked breathlessly, frowning hard, “Just like that?”  
Batman shook his head, “No. I own this place. If I find out you are doing anything illegal, anything, in here I will not allow you back.”  
Edward looked at the odd setup, “This is unnecessary, I told you, I don’t need your help.”  
Batman frowned at him, it was obvious that he was lying, why didn’t he want to accept help from him? Would he rather live on the streets?  
“You don’t have to stay here,” Batman added, “But this place is here if you want to use it.”  
There was a long silence as Edward looked around, broken by Batman’s words: “There’s a shower through that door. And clothes in the draw under the bed, though I doubt they will fit you.”  
Edward frowned to himself, as if fighting with a voice in his head, before he threw his jacket onto the bed, “… I think I might need a shower,” he said quietly to himself, seeming to have dispelled any doubts he had. Honestly, after weeks of living rough the idea of sleeping in a bed, in clean clothes after having a warm shower seemed like heaven.  
Batman nodded, “I’ll leave you to it, then. “ He turned to walk back to the car, “I’ll be back in about half an hour,” he informed.  
Batman got back in the car and retuned to the road.  
He wasn’t sure if he’d done the right thing, leaving Edward alone, but that base was one he didn’t use often, didn’t keep anything important in, didn’t care about losing. But he did trust Edward, as much as he ever could given what he had done.  
He had seen the tapes and read the profiles and Edward really did seem to be cured.   
He needed to know that he could trust him, and he wanted Edward to trust him in return, this seemed like the perfect opportunity.  
//  
Edward walked the apartment in only his boxers, letting his freshly washed and dried body feel the warm air as he pulled out the draws, finding stacks of coloured t-shirts and white collar shirts alongside several pairs of dark trousers.  
He found a deep green t-shirt and pulled it over his head, it was far too long and wide, at least two sizes too big, it seemed more like a tent than a shirt.  
The trousers were too big too, he felt like a fucking clown, but they were comfy at least, and unimaginably soft. He didn’t want to wear them yet, he looked ridiculous, he looked so scraggly in them and he didn’t want Batman seeing him looking so weak. But he didn’t want to change back into his dirty trousers.   
“Shit,” he mumbled to himself, standing straight, unsure what to do now, he shook his head, he didn’t want to be undressed when Batman returned.  
“Having some trouble?” a familiar voice growled from behind him, Edward’s head dropped and he let out a deep sigh.  
He turned his head and saw Batman approaching, how he had got in without Edward’s noticing completely baffled him. “These trousers are far too big,” Edward complained, turning fully as Batman reached him, feeling rather naked as the man’s eyes scoured him.  
“You have a belt,” Batman pointed out, looking at the thing on the bed.  
Edward nodded, “Yes, but I can’t wear that while asleep,” he retorted, smiling slightly with the words.  
“Then don’t wear them while you sleep. I’m the only one who comes in here and I won’t be watching you sleep.”  
Edward frowned slightly, “Fine,” he said shortly. “Well I would very much like to sleep now and seeing as you don’t intend to watch me, perhaps you should leave.”  
Batman’s mouth twitched, as much as he wanted to trust Edward he didn’t feel comfortable leaving him for such a long amount of time without any supervision. He could survey him using the cameras around the room they were not very well hidden and he knew Edward would soon find and disconnect them.   
“A cup of tea first?” Batman offered, attempting a smile, which seemed to unnerve Edward more than he had hoped.  
Edward raised am eyebrow, biting his lip slightly, “Sure,” he said cautiously, pulling on the too-large trousers and wrapping his belt around his waist, “If you insist.”  
Batman gestured towards the sofa, meaning for Edward to sit while he went to the tiny kitchen area a few feet from the bed.  
Edward sat on the soft grey sofa, jumping immediately as the TV turned on, realising a second later that he had been sitting on the remote.   
Batman’s head twitched to him as he turned the kettle on, “It gets all the movie channels,” he informed, realising a few seconds later how the sentence sounded.  
“You’re asking me to watch a film with you?” Edward asked lowly, wondering how much more intimate this would get, as if he didn’t feel uncomfortable enough as it was.  
“No, I’m…” Batman let his voice trail off as he shook his head, feeling like an idiot for mentioning it. He quickly made the tea and moved to the sofa, where Edward sat looking very uncomfortable, though the man did seem to have settled on a channel.  
“I picked a film,” Edward said, seeming reluctant to drink the tea he had been handed, sniffing and tasting it before deciding it was safe to dink.  
Batman nodded, taking a long sip of his own tea, partially to show Edward that it was ok drink it. “I’ll leave after the tea, I don’t want to keep you from sleep.”  
Edward shook his head, finally beginning to drink his tea, “I doubt I’ll sleep much, I can’t sleep very well on my own, especially in a new place.”  
That was a partial lie: he usually found it hard to sleep, but he’d hardly slept in the past week, he could feel that he needed it, and he was almost sure that the moment his head hit the pillow he would fall asleep.  
Batman grunted slightly, “If you’re worried, I don’t have to leave,” he offered, wanting the man to sleep, not wanting to give him the opportunity to do anything bad.  
Not that he would, of course, Edward had changed, he was no longer ‘Riddler’.  
Batman didn’t really want to give his the chance though.  
“No,” Edward replied gently, “I’m ok, I’m sure I’ll be fine.” He smiled slightly as he sipped his tea, “I don’t need a baby sitter.”  
“I just want you to be comfortable,” Batman said with a slight growl, his usual menace somewhat dulled by the fact that he was under bright lights and was sipping tea from a mug bearing the words ‘I am Batman’.  
“I would be more comfortable without your eyes boring into my skull,” Edward groaned in reply.  
“You would rather not sleep and have me leave?” Batman asked, genuinely curious and he stared at the poorly-clothed man.  
“I’ll sleep fine, Batman,” Edward almost snapped, “I just… have trouble drifting off,” he explained, his mug of tea now half finished as he took another mouthful.  
Batman frowned, unsure of how he would be able to help that. He looked down and realised his drink was almost gone, he exhaled gently, “If you don’t want me here then I’ll go,” he stated.  
Edward huffed, “I can’t tell you to leave Batman, this is your house, but I would prefer you weren’t just here while I was asleep. I-If you were doing something that’d be fine. I don’t want you just standing over me… you’d give me nightmares…”  
Batman looked towards his car, letting out a slight huff, “I need to check and refill the oil in the Batmobile, it should take no longer than 10 minutes.”  
Edward nodded and put his empty cup on the coffee table, “You do that then, I’m going to get some sleep. Try not to be too loud.”  
Batman nodded, getting to his feet as Edward did and walking towards his car, looking over his shoulder and watching the man turn the lights off and clamber into the soft bed, hearing him let out a tiny moan as he lay down. He wondered how long it had been since he had slept in a proper bed. He should have tried to find him sooner.  
He fiddled with his car for around 7 minutes; the oil hadn’t actually needed changing but he wanted to make sure his guest was at least comfortable before he left.  
He opened the door to the car, ready to leave, giving a final look towards the bed and its now sleeping occupant as he left.  
//  
Edward sat with his legs dangling over the edge of the bed, swinging slightly as he chewed his tongue, thinking over his situation, as he had been for the past half an hour.  
He knew exactly how he had got here, but how would he get out? No one would hire him, he had no way of earning money; no one would hire an ex-con, especially one with his track record.  
He couldn’t stay here forever.  
He wouldn’t want to, not with Batman watching him every second, judging everything he did, looming over him and expecting him to do something bad.  
“I brought you something to eat,” Batman’s voice came again from outside Edward’s field of vision. He huffed slightly as he looked up, seeing Batman placing two cups of coffee and a paper bag on the coffee table.  
“I do wish you wouldn’t do that, you’ll give me a heart attack,” he snarked as he got to his feet, walking over to pull the paper travel cup from the cardboard, sniffing it and taking his first sip.  
Batman took his own cup and pulled the lid off, “I’ll knock next time,” he offered with a nod. He took a sip of his drink and gave the ex-con a forced and awkward smile.  
Edward frowned slightly, sipping his coffee again, “I-uh… I suppose you’ll want me to leave? Sometime soon.”  
The vigilante shook his head, busying himself with throwing away the lid to his cup, “No, I told you, you can stay here for as long as you like. This is your registered address now, all your mail will come here from now on. You cannot run a business from here, but I know where there are some jobs going.”  
Edward’s frown contorted in disgust; Batman had seen fit to change all this, without his knowledge or approval, take over his life as if he were an invalid. “I didn’t ask you to do any of that,” he shook his head, “And no one will hire me anyway.”  
“There are jobs available in the technical department of WayneTech, they’ve hired ex-cons before, I already handed in your C.V,” Batman informed, “If you were successful you will receive a call within the next hour.”  
“What?!” Edward said through gritted teeth, “I don’t want to work there.”  
“Then what do you want to do?” Batman asked bluntly.  
Edward stuttered slightly, “I-I… wanted to be a private detective, that’s what I told you, that’s what I’ve been saying for months.”  
Batman nodded, returning to the table to open the paper bag that sat on it, pulling out a pastry and beginning to pick at it. “That would count as running a business from here, which you cannot do. If you take the job at WayneTech you can earn something, and find an apartment, and you can start your business there.”  
Edward grunted slightly, retrieving his own food from the paper bag and ripping a bite out of it, unable to find anything wrong with Batman’s logic, but feeling rather violated none the less.  
He huffed slightly and watched Batman eat his food, “They won’t call,” he informed cynically with a shake of his head.  
“Why would you think that?” Batman asked, now alternating between eating his food and drinking his coffee.  
“They never call, Batman, I’ve been trying for months, they never call.”  
“They might call this time.”  
“If fucking Subway won’t employ me then I can assure you that WayneTech will not,” Edward snapped, his face going red in a mix of humiliation and anger.  
Batman shrugged, trying not to let his smugness show on his face, trying still not to smirk as the pone on the wall started to ring.  
Edward jolted at the noise as if it were one he’d never heard before, and he turned his head towards it, focusing with a frown on the ringing phone, “That’s…”  
“For you,” Batman almost gloated, smiling internally at the perfect timing of the call.  
The man, still frowning, his breath stalling through sheer disbelief, walked to the phone to answer it.  
This call couldn’t be for him, it was a wrong number it had to be, no one had even tried to contact him, not for any job, let alone one in a firm as prestigious as Waynetech.  
It had been weeks since he’d even been informed of a rejection.  
He shook his head at the voice that called lightly down the phone, “Hello? Is mister Nigma there, this is Alisa from Waynetech Technicians department calling about his application.”  
His throat when dry, he pushed out a cough and forced words to leave him. “Yes, hello. This is Edward Nigma.”  
“Ah, sir,” she said, her voice smiling, “We’d like to inform you that your application has been successful, congratulations. Mr Wayne has informed us that you need not attend an interview. You have the job. A supervisor, uh... Thomas Creek will be in contact with you at some point later today with your start date.”  
Edward felt feint, he wasn’t sure if he was going to throw up or cry. He was just… in shock. He almost dropped the phone when he heard her voice again, and even then had trouble speaking.  
“Mr Nigma?” she asked, thinking he may have hung up.  
“Y-Yes,” he stuttered, “Ok, thank you, thank you Alisa.”  
“Have a nice day Mr Nigma,” she concluded, hanging up the phone a moment after.  
“Yeah, I-I will,” Edward stumbled, also hanging up the phone.  
He stood, unsure of what to do, he turned to look quizzically at Batman, “What… What did you do? Do you.. know Mr. Wayne, or something?”  
His mind wasn’t working, he felt stuck I his own body, wanting to move but unable.  
“I know people, I pulled some strings,” Batman gloated, walking to Edward’s side, frowning slightly as he noticed that he had turned pale, “…Edward, are you ok.”  
Edward stuttered a little, “I-I tried for months. You try for one day and… I can’t believe it. How did you do this?”  
“I have my ways,” Batman answered, smirking and extending a hand to pat Edward on the arm, hoping to pull him out of whatever trance he seemed to have fallen into.  
He suddenly found Edward arms wrapped around him in an awkwardly tight hug, the man’s head pressed against his neck. “Thank you,” Edward said quietly into his neck, as if trying to hide the words.  
“It’s no problem,” Batman said in reply, standing stiff, “I can’t have you turning back to crime because you have no other option. I had to do something.”  
Edward pulled away, blinking away tears as the shock wore off, and excitement started to grow in him, “I don’t know what you did, but thank you… this… is unlike anything anyone has ever done for me before, this is amazing.”  
“You know I can never repay you for this, there is no way,” Edward smiled, shaking his head. He chuckled gently, “I can’t believe you. I didn’t ask you to do this.”  
Batman nodded, watching as Edward paced slightly, running his hand through his hair and repeatedly wiping tears from his eyes, “I know. You don’t have to pay me back, you don’t need to do anything. Just, go to work, Edward.”  
“I have a job,” Edward said in bemusement, “I can’t believe it.” He paced in front of batman, running his hands through his hair.  
“Calm down Edward,” Batman pled, “Stop pacing.”  
Batman tensed as Edward moved towards him, expecting another hug, he jolted slightly as Edward’s arms wrapped around him, hands clasping at his clothing, and the man’s lips pressed against his own.


End file.
